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Superbug gallery hosts PhD programme launch

Our National PhD Training Programme in Antimicrobial Resistance has launched

Last updated

17/09/18

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Our first intake of 18 antimicrobial resistance PhD students met in the Science Museum’s Superbugs gallery yesterday to launch the programme

I would like to congratulate the Medical Research Foundation and the senior academics involved in this excellent programme and I wish you and the students the very best – you can count on my support

Prof Dame Sally Davies
CMO

Prof Nick Lemoine and Prof Dame Sally Davies, CMO

We are investing £4million to fund the only UK-wide multi-disciplinary PhD training programme dedicated to antimicrobial resistance research. Antimicrobial resistance, in particular antibiotic resistance, is a threat to humanity and we don’t know where the solution will come from so the programme aims to give our students the widest possible set of ideas and skills to draw on.

Medical Research Foundation’s CEO Dr Angela Hind said: “Unlike many health charities, we do not have to provide support for a particular disease or condition, or a particular research institution. We are free to choose our own research priorities. Antimicrobial resistance is a huge threat to human health and so that’s why the Foundation is funding this programme that invites PhD students to explore new ideas and develop skills in more than one research discipline and learn from each other’s diverse disciplines.”

Multidisciplinary PhD students funded by the Medical Research Foundation

The Foundation is working alongside the University of Bristol to deliver the national PhD Training Programme in AMR. In total 16 universities around the UK will host the 18 students.

The training progamme will help to build a research community focused on antimicrobial resistance, Professor Matthew Avison of the University of Bristol is academic lead: “We want to equip PhD scientists with the skills and multidisciplinary thinking to tackle one of the biggest challenges in medical research today.”

The Techtonics performed an antimicrobial acapella song

The Medical Research Foundation hopes to continue to build capacity by working with other research funders to co-fund PhD students who’ll begin studying in 2019 and 2020.

Prof Nick Lemoine, Medical Research Foundation Chair, says: “Antimicrobial resistance is too big a threat not to explore, we’re proud that the Medical Research Foundation is taking the lead by training the next generation of researchers and we’re keen to hear from other funders who’d like to explore working together to fund the next student intake.”

Generous support from UK Research and Innovation made the launch event possible.